People waving the flag of South Africa during Ramaphosa’s second term inauguration in Pretoria. — ©2024 The New York Times Company
WITH a humility stemming from his party’s electoral disappointment, President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa was sworn in for a second term, conceding bluntly to the government’s failure to cure a nation that remains deeply divided and economically fraught in the three decades since the end of apartheid.
Facing the reality of governing in partnership with rival politicians, Ramaphosa, the leader of the African National Congress (ANC), issued a call for unity reminiscent of the father of the nation, Nelson Mandela. Mandela had stood on the same bluff of government buildings overlooking the capital, Pretoria, in 1994 and tried to rally a country looking to move past its collective trauma.
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